Cleaning Trout

[Angela]

Adventures in Self Reliance

I have to say it is a little strange doing this standing up at a counter instead of kneeling by a creek, but it still works. Don't get queasy on me here--The Illustrated Guide to Gutting Trout:

Step 1: Turn the fish belly up and get a good hold of it (they're kind of slimy and slippery).







Step 2: Cut from the anus up the middle of the belly to the "V" right behind where the gills come together (about where my left hand is in this picture). A sharp knife of any size will do the trick--you just need to cut through the skin and muscle. A smaller knife would be easier to work with--I was at a friend's house and this was her sharpest knife, so we used it.





Step 3: Between the jaw and the gills are two soft spots that form a V under the chin. Stick the knife in one side and out the other and cut up so it looks like this:





Step 4: Using the hole you just made, grab the jaw in one hand and the lower gill section in the other and pull apart.





Step 5: Keep pulling. This will tear off the first pair of bottom fins and pull all the entrails out in one motion.





Last, rinse the inside and outside of the fish and scrape along the inside spine with a fingernail or something else hard and blunt to scrape the majority of the black gunk out. If you are doing this at the river you'll need to wash the fish inside and out again before cooking it when you get to clean water.